Taking Advice From A Song Arc
by Lady Sol
Summary: The Pilots take advice from songs they hear all around them to help them make their lives worth living.
1. Karaoke

Karaoke By Lady Sol Overall Rating: PG-15  
  
Disclaimers: The only thing I own is the plot and a Gundam Wing Calendar, and all my Yu-Gi-Oh! Cards. Don't even own a copy of the song, so poor, am I. Don't sue, cuz I don't think you really want an 'Acid Trap Hole' card.  
  
Warnings: Shounen ai. Past child abuse. Song-fic. Heero's POV.  
  
Pairings: 1x2  
  
Summary: Duo drags Heero to a Karaoke Bar. There, he finds someone he thought he would never see again.  
  
Feedback: ::settles herself into Wing Zero and turns it on:: Anytime now!  
  
/Yadda yadda/ - Song Lyrics  
  
Karaoke  
  
I sigh as Duo drags me to a table close to the front. I can't believe he talked me into doing this.  
  
I, Heero Yuy, The Perfect Soldier, am in a karaoke bar.  
  
And not just a karaoke bar, oh no. Duo has insisted that this one is 'special' for some reason or another. I don't know what is so special, there is a drunk on stage trying to belt out the chorus to 'Like a Virgin,' there's a DJ in the back of the room taking requests, and several people at the bar.  
  
Ah that's why.  
  
There were posters of the Gundams lining one side of the wall. Some of the posters had black writing around them. I get up as Duo skips to the bar and examine the posters carefully. There was a lot of writing around the one of my Wing Zero. It seems all the writings were dedications to soldiers that had fallen by my hands.  
  
Great, just what I wanted to do. Come into a bar were everyone hates Pilot 01 because he killed his or her brother or cousin.  
  
As I entertain the notion of throttling Duo for bringing me here, I hear a chorus of boo's filled the room. I turn to the stage and notice a teen-aged girl step up to the mike. I squint and look closer. She looked awfully familiar.  
  
Duo comes up next to me and hands me a drink. "Having fun?" he asks.  
  
I give him my best Death Glare, which he brushes off. "I know, I know. Yes, I brought you to an Anti-Gundam karaoke bar. But there is a reason, and she is standing right there," he points to the girl glaring at everyone at the audience that was giving her a disapproving look.  
  
I stare at her. She seems so familiar.but I just couldn't place her face. I look at Duo. "Why is she your reason?" I ask him.  
  
He sighed and leaned against my side, and I instinctually put my arm around him and pulled him closer to me. "You are always saying how your killing never helped anyone, even if it did bring about peace," he told me in a soft voice, and took a sip of his drink, "and she is going to prove you wrong."  
  
"Hn," I reply. How can a girl, who looks only a few years younger than me, prove that statement wrong? I glance back at the poster of Wing Zero, reading each writing critically. All of them cursed me and my Gundam for taking away their loved ones. How can one little girl, one little girl, prove me and the other soldiers wrong?  
  
I turned back to the stage and the girl took a breath. "I dedicate this song-" she started, but was interrupted by a man near the back.  
  
"We know this already! Why don't go find your Gundam friends if they mean so damn much to you!" he growled, followed by the agreement to the crowd.  
  
Wait, 'if they mean so much'? What was this guy talking about? This place was Anti-Gundam, wasn't it?  
  
Duo leaned closer to my ear and whispered, "In case you're wondering, this is an Oz Officer Bar. But anyone who has been an officer or has been a family member of one can be here, too."  
  
"So why are we here?" I growled back, eyeing the crowd carefully.  
  
Duo just smiled and turned back to the stage.  
  
The girl took a deep breath and tried again. "I dedicate this song to the Pilot of the Gundam 01. He alone saved my life from a cruelty that no one else bothered to even turn their heads for."  
  
Well, that was unexpected to say the least.  
  
"Rachel, would you just shut up about that fucking pilot saving your life! Yes, He killed your father, but shouldn't you be sad about that?" Somebody else cried out from the crowd.  
  
But I didn't understand. I saved somebody's life by just killing her own father? It didn't make sense. Shouldn't she be cursing me to the eternal hell I deserved?  
  
Rachel glared out into the crowd once more. "He killed my father, and I'm glad because if hadn't killed my father, my mother and I wouldn't be alive today. He would come home and beat us and hurt us so badly. And about stupid things, too. Because I wasn't a boy instead of a girl. That my mother would go shopping for food without telling him which brand of milk she was going to buy. That she wasn't a solider like him and I didn't want to be one either. But then." she paused a moment, listen to all the negative comments coming from the crowd.  
  
Duo turned to me and raised his eyebrow in question. I nodded. I understood now. Sometimes, in taking a life during the war, I may have saved another life back home. My fighting, my killing, did have a purpose.  
  
Someone form the crowd just shouted then, "Rachel, you're father died before the war. How could you give credit to Pilot 01 for killing him? He died when a Mobile Suit crash into your civilian complex."  
  
*flash*  
  
A Mobile Suit being hit by the explosion.  
  
*flash*  
  
It's falling towards the wrong building.  
  
*flash*  
  
A flower.  
  
*flash*  
  
A puppy on a leash.  
  
*flash*  
  
"Are you lost, Ojou-san?"  
  
*flash*  
  
It was her.  
  
It was her!  
  
It was the small girl that I thought I killed in that mission gone bad! It was the last time I had felt any emotions before my re-training, and then Duo showed me how to feel again.  
  
I looked at her now, up on stage, defending me. She was alive! But how? And.I had saved her life?  
  
"I met him," the girl said, confirming what he now thought, "I saw him in the park that day. I asked him if he was lost. Then, a few years later, I saw his picture again with the Gundams. He saved me and my mother, and I hope that where ever he is, I hope he is happy, and I.I hope he remembers me."  
  
'Oh, if only you knew,' I thought. I still couldn't believe that she was still alive.  
  
And this song was going out to me? Where ever I was? All this time?  
  
More people of the crowd started to tell her to get off the stage and edging closer to it. She started to look a little scared, like she was afraid that they were going to beat her and kick her out.  
  
Believe me, and angry mob isn't a good thing to see coming at you.  
  
"Stop," I said in a very loud and clear voice.  
  
It was like a gun had gone off. Everyone stopped and turned towards me.  
  
"Let her sing," Duo said, pointing to the girl.  
  
The crowd mumbled something about this being the very last time they would listen to that fucking song, but they slowly moved back to the tables. The girl, Rachel was her name, nodded to the DJ and the drumbeat of a pre- Colony song came through the speakers. I watched intently as she opened her mouth sang her heart out to me.  
  
/This bloody road remains a mystery/  
  
/This sudden darkness fills the air/  
  
/What are we waiting for?/  
  
/Won't anybody help us?/  
  
/What are we waiting for?/  
  
/We can't afford to be innocent/  
  
/Stand up and face the enemy/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
I started at her in disbelief. She was singing about how I felt during war.  
  
/This shattered dream you cannot justify/  
  
/We're gonna scream until we're satisfied/  
  
/What are we running for?/  
  
/We've got the right to be angry/  
  
/What are we running for?/  
  
/When there's nowhere we can run to anymore/  
  
/We can't afford to be innocent/  
  
/Stand up and face the enemy/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
/And with the power of conviction/  
  
/There is no sacrifice/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
I looked around the room and noticed that everyone was glaring at Rachel as she sung her song.  
  
/Won't anybody help us?/  
  
/What are we running for?/  
  
/When there's nowhere - nowhere - we can run to anymore/  
  
/We can't afford to be innocent/  
  
/Stand up and face the enemy/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
/And with the power of conviction/  
  
/There is no sacrifice/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
/We can't afford to be innocent/  
  
/Stand up and face the enemy/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
/We can't afford to be innocent/  
  
/Stand up and face the enemy/  
  
/It's a do-or-die situation/  
  
/We will be invincible/  
  
Rachel put the mike back down as the music faded out and walked off stage and out the door. As the crowd gave a cheer that the song was over, I gave Duo a meaningful look and we both fallowed her outside. She was standing across the street, in a field, staring up at the night sky. I saw her reach her hand up towards the stars as tears fell down her cheeks. As Duo and I moved closer, we could hear her talking.  
  
"I hope you're not lost anymore, oni-san," she said, clenching her fist and bringing down to her chest."  
  
"Aa, I'm not," I said.  
  
She whipped around quickly glare at me. "Who are you?" she demanded.  
  
I took another step closer to her and pulled a pressed flower out of my pocket. It was the same flower she had given me on that day, so many years ago. I handed it to her.  
  
"I'm not lost anymore," I told her softly.  
  
She looked hard at the flower and then back at me. "Who are you?" she asked.  
  
I took one more step towards her to allow her to see my face clearly. As she studied it Duo came up next to me. Looked at his face and mine and her eyes lit up in recognition. "You're the Gundam Pilots!" she exclaimed.  
  
"Aa, we are," I said softly, and then had an armful of the girl as she hugged me fiercely.  
  
"You found your way! I'm glad you're ok, I never got to tell you, I never got to tell you that you saved my life! When you walked off after the explosion, I wanted to run and thank you, but momma was hurt and she kept asking what had happened and-" she just went on and on. I looked at Duo over the top of her and silently pleaded for help with my eyes. I am use to politicians thanking me for my help with a handshake and a turning of the back. I didn't know how to react to a girl who talked more than Duo did and was genuinely happy for my intervention.  
  
Duo seemed to understand and put his hand on her shoulder and gently pulled her away from me. She turned and looked at him. He gave her one of his patented grins and said, "Hi, I'm Duo, and your knight in shining armor is Heero. Hajemamasahite." He gave her a little bow as he shook her hand.  
  
She smiled back and bowed as well. "Hajemamashite. My name is Rachel. Oh, I'm sorry!" she turned at me again and blushed, "I carried on like that and I hadn't even introduced myself!"  
  
I gave her a small smile. "It's ok," I said, shaking her hand as well, "I was just as eager. I'm glad you are ok."  
  
Rachel smile practically beamed up from her face. "I'm more than ok! You saved my life, and momma's too! Thank you so much!"  
  
I nodded and hugged her back. "You are very welcome. And thank you."  
  
She looked up at me. "Why are you thanking me? I've done nothing to help you."  
  
I shook my head softly and wiped a tear from her cheek. "But you did. You helped me by letting me know that I am not a cold-blooded killer. That I did help protect some innocence. That my-" I broke off as a tear crept down my cheek, "-that my killing wasn't in vain."  
  
"It never was, Oni-san. I'm glad you're not lost anymore," she hugged me harder and turned to Duo. "Tonight's pasta night at home. Would you two like to join us? I know momma wouldn't mind!"  
  
Duo laughed and took my hand. "Sure! I'm never one to turn down food!"  
  
We all laughed at that, and Rachel took my other hand and led us to her home. I smiled as both of our hands held the flower that brought us back together at last.  
  
Owari. 


	2. Masquerade!

Masquerade! By Lady Sol Overall Rating: PG-15  
  
Disclaimers: The only thing I own is the plot and a Gundam Wing Calendar, and all my Yu-Gi-Oh! Cards. Don't sue, cuz I don't think you really want an 'Acid Trap Hole' card. 'Masquerade!' taken from The Phantom of the Opera.  
  
Warnings: Shounen ai. Trowa's POV.  
  
Pairings: 3x4  
  
Summary: Quatre takes Trowa to go see an Opera. But one song seems to be telling Trowa exactly what is holding him down.  
  
Feedback: ::settles herself into Wing Zero and turns it on:: Anytime now!  
  
Lady Sol: I really wasn't gonna make this an Arc, but when a couple of people wanted me to write a sequel to Karaoke, who am I to refuse?  
  
Wufei: You're the fanfic writer. You can say no if you wanted too.  
  
L S: Yeah, but where is the fun in that? The fans demand, so I must write!  
  
Heero: So why are you writing this instead of working on We Will Be Invincible Part Three?  
  
L S: Uhhhhh, negligent muse?  
  
Heero: Omae o korosu. ::aims gun::  
  
Duo: Heero! You can't kill her! If you do, she will never get to finish the fic!  
  
Heero: Hn. ::lowers gun::  
  
L S: ::takes a deep breath:: OK, look, after this fic I PROMISE I'll get part Three out, ok?  
  
Heero: Hn. Acceptable.  
  
L S: Ok, then, on with the fic!  
  
/Yadda yadda/ - Song Lyrics  
  
Masquerade!  
  
An Opera. I'm going to see an Opera.  
  
Who would have thought that Pilot 03 of the Gundam Heavyarms, would be in a tuxedo, walking into a huge opera house, to see an Opera?  
  
'The Phantom of the Opera' to be precise?  
  
Not the said pilot, you can be sure of that.  
  
But what could I do? Quatre had gotten tickets though his numerous contacts and practically was begging me to go. And he had given me those puppy-dog eyes.  
  
You know the ones I'm talking about.  
  
The ones that just scream 'I'm-just-too-cute-for-you-to-say-no-and-if-you- go-I'll-do-anything-you-want-just-please-say-yes-and-that-you'll-go-with- me!'  
  
Who am I to deny my lover of anything?  
  
Needless to say, I agreed. I wasn't expecting an armful of Quatre though as he launched himself into my arms with enough force to knock me to the ground and kissed me senseless.  
  
Quatre is a very good kisser.  
  
So here I am, walking up the steps to Quatre's private box. I don't know why he wanted me to go, or why he wanted to see this opera imparticularly. I mean, it's just about a ghost who falls in love with a girl, but looses her anyway to a childhood friend of hers, right?  
  
Quatre beams up at me as I enter the box. I slide into the chair next to him and take the program that he hands me. "This is going to be wonderful, Trowa!" he beams, wiggling in his seat excitedly, "And there is this one part I know you'll love!"  
  
"Really?" I ask. I'm not that up to date with operas. I mean, don't they all have some fat lady singing in some foreign tongue? I flip through the program. "And exactly which part am I going to love?"  
  
Quatre gives me one of his sly smiles. "I'm not going to tell you. But you will know it when you see it."  
  
Oh great, a guessing game. I hate guessing games. But anything to amuse my smaller lover. As the lights dimmed down he crawled into my seat and we sat there and watched the performance.  
  
I must admit, it wasn't how I thought it would be. It didn't start in song, but an auction. The first part performance itself was nothing like how I thought it was. Oh, it did have a fat lady singing in it, but she wasn't the star.  
  
And the music. The music was just astounding. It was nothing like I have ever heard. It gave me the feeling of being trapped, of wanting to feel loved, of having love to give, but of having to hide it from the outside world. Of how it was to live behind a mask, as it were.  
  
I remembered there was a booth outside in the lobby that was selling the soundtrack of the performance. I made a mental note to get a copy as I watched the chandelier fall to the stage. It was now intermission. As everyone stepped outside, Quatre turned up to look at me.  
  
"How are you enjoying it so far?" he asked, playing with my tie.  
  
I nodded my approval and gently took his hand into mine. "I was thinking of buying the soundtrack. That is, if the second act is as good as the first."  
  
Quatre smiled at me and leaned his head against my chest. "I already have it."  
  
I looked at him in surprise. "You do? How come I never hear you play it?"  
  
He gave me another sly smile and looked back down to the stage as the lights dimmed once again. "You do. But just this track that is coming up."  
  
I hide my confused look as I saw on stage what appeared to be a big ball. But then, I listened to the song they were singing and realized, he did play this song all the time.  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Paper faces on parade./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Hide your face,/  
  
/So the world will/  
  
/Never find you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Every face a different shade./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Look around-/  
  
/There's another/  
  
/Mask behind you!/  
  
/Flash of mauve./  
  
/Splash of puce./  
  
/Fool and king./  
  
/Ghoul and goose./  
  
/Green and black./  
  
/Queen and priest./  
  
/Trace of rogue./  
  
/Face of beast./  
  
/Faces./  
  
/Take your turn, take a ride/  
  
/On the merry-go-round./  
  
/In an inhuman race./  
  
/Eye of gold./  
  
/Thigh of blue./  
  
/True is false./  
  
/Who is who.?/  
  
/Curl of lip./  
  
/Swirl of gown./  
  
/Ace of hearts./  
  
/Face of clown./  
  
/Faces./  
  
/Drink it in, drink it up/  
  
/Till you've drowned/  
  
/In the light./  
  
/In the sound./  
  
/But who can name a face?/  
  
I leaned forward intent of the words of the song. They were saying what I had felt during the war. What many of all of us had felt. Having to hide behind different names and different faces, like a masquerade.  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Grinning yellows/  
  
/Spinning reds./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Take your fill-/  
  
/Let the spectacle/  
  
/Astound you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Burning glances,/  
  
/Turning heads./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Stop and stare/  
  
/At the sea of smiles/  
  
/Around you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Seething shadows,/  
  
/Breathing lies./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/You can fool/  
  
/Any friend who/  
  
/Ever knew you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Leering satyrs,/  
  
/Peering eyes./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Run and hide-/  
  
/But a face will/  
  
/Still pursue you!/  
  
During the vocal interlude something flashed in my head. There was a time during the war, right before Quatre and I confessed our feelings to each other, that I had heard this song being played over and over and over from Quatre's room. The night it stopped, actually, was the night he had come marching into my room and told me that he didn't care if I hated him forever, he was tired of hiding his feelings for me.  
  
I remember that night very well. We both woke up the next morning on the floor next to the door he made the little proclamation from. Not that we were complaining.  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Paper faces on parade./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Hide your face,/  
  
/So the world will/  
  
/Never find you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Every face a different shade./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Look around-/  
  
/There's another/  
  
/Mask behind you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Burning glances,/  
  
/Turning heads./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Stop and stare/  
  
/At the sea of smiles/  
  
/Around you!/  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Grinning yellows/  
  
/Spinning reds./  
  
/Masquerade!/  
  
/Take your fill-/  
  
/Let the spectacle/  
  
/Astound you!/  
  
I remember the rest of the opera very clearly. Well, at least what was going on in the private box. I showed Quatre that the message did not go unnoticed, and that I would pull of my mask more than just in private.  
  
I would try to let everyone know who the true Trowa Barton was. Even myself.  
  
And Quatre was right. There was one part I love. At the very end.  
  
Owari.  
  
L S: I dunno...I think that ending was just a little too vague...  
  
Quatre: Well, you did have to leave it at a PG-13 rating...  
  
L S: No, it was a PG-15.  
  
Trowa: Point being, it's fine. Just send this over to Adele, have her beta it for you, and post it. Stop worrying!  
  
L S: But what if Adele-chan wants a more ::fake cough:: specific ending?  
  
Quatre: Then write one. But I think everyone will like this the way it is.  
  
L S: You sure?  
  
Trowa: Positive.  
  
L S: Ok then! But...  
  
Duo: ::pops in:: Hey, Heero wants to know when you're gonna finish his torture session.  
  
L S: In a couple of hours! I'm still having trouble...  
  
Duo: Trouble with what? Anything I can help with?  
  
L S: Not really. I just don't know what song to write about next.  
  
Duo: That's gonna be the least of your worries if ya don't finish Heero's fic.  
  
L S: But it's driving me crazy! ::hops into Wing Zero and turns it on:: No ideas! No ideas!  
  
Wufei: I have an idea.  
  
Quatre: You do?  
  
Duo: Speak, Wu-man! Before she self-destructs in that thing!  
  
Wufei: Let the fans decide.  
  
Trowa: ...good idea.  
  
Wufei: Thank you.  
  
Duo: Hey Sunny, ya can come down from there! Wufei had an idea!  
  
L S: ::powers down Wing Zero:: Idea? My muses have brought me an idea?  
  
Trowa: Well...  
  
Quatre: Not necessarily us...  
  
Wufei: I thought that maybe you could let the readers decide the next song for the arc.  
  
L S: Hey, Wufei, that's a great idea! Maybe I'll have you getting some for such a good idea!  
  
Wufei: ::nosebleeds and runs out of room::  
  
L S: Oh well. You heard 'em! For the next song I do, you decide! But when you leave the song you want, be sure to leave a link to someplace I can get a copy of the lyrics. I'm not very good at getting music to listen to them. So happy hunting!  
  
Heero(muffled): Now come finish this damn fic!  
  
L S: Coming! Sheesh, everyone wants the writer to write, but what if the writer just wants some sleep and... ::mumbles on as she walks out of the room:: 


End file.
